Never Too Old For Love: Revera Report on Romance Sets the Record Straight About Love As You Age

Revera Report on Romance Sets the Record Straight About Love As You Age Facebook Twitter

Seniors Say You Are Never Too Old for Love in Revera Report on Romance Facebook Twitter

Never Too Old For Love: Why Love Really Matters As We Age (CNW Group/Revera Inc.)

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Revera Report on Romance Sets the Record Straight About Love As You Age

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Seniors Say You Are Never Too Old for Love in Revera Report on Romance

Love, romance and social activity in later life has important health,
quality of life benefits, says expert gerontologist

For more in-depth love stories, interviews with local seniors in GTA and
Calgary are available; Infographic also available

TORONTO, Feb. 7, 2012 /CNW/ - Seniors are setting the record straight -
love and romance aren't just for the young, according to the Revera
Report on Romance, a new survey by Revera Inc., Canada's leading provider of seniors care and services. Seven-in-ten
seniors over age 75 say you are never too old for love and the same
amount agree love and romance remains an important aspect of their
lives. What's more, senior men are even more in love with love than
women, with 83 per cent saying it's important versus 56 per cent of
women.

"Seniors' positive outlook on love and romance is encouraging to see
because they are both important aspects of social interaction," says
Dr. Amy D'Aprix, gerontologist and expert on aging. "What many people
don't know, is remaining socially active can have a significant impact
on your physical health, and may even help to reduce your risk of
developing dementia and Alzheimer's disease. It's also been shown to
have a comparable impact on mortality as smoking and alcohol." She
continued, "And of course, there's no question that it also contributes
to happiness and emotional health."

It's not just the experts who recognize the importance of socializing as
we age — seniors themselves overwhelmingly support the concept. When
surveyed, 88 per cent of seniors agree that companionship is something
they couldn't do without, and 98 per cent said they thought keeping
socially active was as important to successfully aging as good physical
health.

Challenging myths
There's a common myth that love, romance and the need for companionship
fades as we grow older and this is being perpetuated by the younger
generations. In fact, fewer than half (only 38 per cent) of Generation
Y and Boomers in the survey predict love and romance will be "very
important" when they're over 75, and even fewer think they'll be "very
interested" in dating at that age if they didn't already have a partner
(8 per cent of Generation Y and 13 per cent of Boomers). In fact, the
Revera Report revealed not only that love and romance do remain
important for those 75-plus, it also showed just as many seniors have
romantic partners as 18 to 30 year olds (approximately half for each
group).

Love and romance are also often perceived as more important to women
than men. The Revera Report challenges this assumption, with senior men
revealing they are even more in love (83 per cent) with love than women
(56 per cent). In fact, senior men are nearly twice as likely as women
of the same age to say they seek ways to spice up their love lives (56
per cent vs. 29 per cent).

Love at any age
Love and romance are as important today as the day he and his wife
Valerie met, according to Mendel, aged 86. Mendel and Valerie met at a
dance for new Canadians in Ottawa shortly after the war. After 60 years
of marriage, three children and eight grandchildren, Mendel still
counts his blessings and believes he's the "luckiest man in the world "
because he has "Valerie's love and compassion." The couple lives at
Revera's Pine Villa Retirement Residence in Toronto and their romance
is still strong. Mendel happily offers that to him, Valerie, aged 82,
looks 30 years younger.

"We see every day in our residences the power of positive social
interaction, which is an essential part of seniors' health and
wellness," said Jeff Lozon, President and CEO, Revera. "Revera is
committed to understanding these issues, and to contributing to the
dialogue about re-imagining the aging experience for Canadian seniors."

About the Revera Report on Romance
Revera, in partnership with Leger Marketing, surveyed older adults aged
75+, Boomers and Gen Yers, to find out about their expectations and
experiences with social interaction as they age, including: love,
romance, dating, and companionship. The survey was completed online
from September 21, 2011 to October 2, 2011 using Leger Marketing's
online panel, LegerWeb, with a sample of 1563 Canadians in the
following age groups: 511 Canadians age 18 to 30, 537 Canadians ages 45
to 64; and 515 Canadians age 75+. A probability sample of the same
size would yield a margin of error of ±2.5 per cent, 19 times out of
20. The Revera Report on Romance is one in a series of reports that
will be issued by Revera exploring different topics relevant to the
aging experience of Canadian seniors.

About Revera Inc.
Revera is a leading provider of seniors' accommodation, care and
services; built on a 50-year history of helping seniors live life to
the fullest. Our nearly 30,000 dedicated employees continually strive
to serve a diverse group of clients and to offer choices to meet their
individual preferences. With 255 sites across Canada and parts of the
U.S., we work to enhance lives in our retirement communities, long term
care homes, U.S. nursing and rehab centres and through the provision of
home health services. Canadian-owned and operated, Revera serves
approximately 30,000 clients every day, with the core values of
respect, integrity, compassion and excellence at the heart of our
business. Find out more about Revera at www.reveraliving.com.